| The Time of the SECOND Advent The Time Is At Hand The prophets have inquired and searched diligently . . . what manner of time the Spirit which was in them did signify, when it testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ, and the glory that should follow.—1 Peter 1:10,11 David Rice As the time of the first advent of Christ was of deep interest to the noble ones tutored under the Law, so the time of the second advent of Christ has been of deep interest to all those longing for "the adoption ... the deliverance" of the saints and the establishment of Christ’s kingdom (Romans 8:23). The long cherished hope of our master’s return maintained the faith of the early disciples, and gave strength to the saints during thevilest persecutions of Rome and Papacy. Evenduring the Dark Ages, earnest students of Daniel and Revelation mused whether their prophecies pointed to the return of Christ as near—perhaps in the year 1000, or 1260, or 1290, or 1335, or perhaps 33 or more years after those dates. One after another of these possibilities passed without fulfillment. But those of faith realized the prophecies were sure, and the lack was in their correct application. Indeed, Daniel himself was informed that these prophecies would not be understood until "the time of the end," at which time "knowledge [of their meaning] shall be increased" (Daniel 12:4). True to the promise, the understanding of these prophecies opened up at the end time, the close of Papacy’s reign of oppression, and formed the kernel of the expectations of the Adventist Movement of the early 1800s. It was this movement which directly prepared the way for the work of the second advent. "At That Time Shall Michael Stand Up" (Daniel 12:1) Michael is our Lord, and to "stand up" is the prophet’s way of saying assume regal authority (see Daniel 11:2,3,4,7 for example). This is the same prophetic point of time mentioned in Revelation 11:15, "the seventh angel sounded: and there were great voices in heaven, saying, The kingdom of this world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ." It is the time of the second advent. The next two verses in Daniel explain the events thus precipitated—a time of trouble, the deliverance of God’s people, and the resurrection of the dead. These events have begun. World Wars I and II ushered in a time of trouble unlike any in history for scope and magnitude. Meanwhile the deliverance of the Lord’s spiritual people from Babylon through the harvest work and present truth, and the restoration of the Lord’s earthly people Israel since 1878, are visible effects of the regal power and authority of our returned Lord. But it pleased the Lord to give us additional insights into the time of his return and "standing up" in the balance of Daniel 12. There are three time prophecies marking successive compelling episodes directing us to the second advent, that by these united strands of evidence —the signs and the time—the evidence for our faith may be precise. Some now see the signs so strongly they ease their concern for the time prophecies. But it is wise for us to receive with thanks all the evidence Divine Wisdom judged good to give on so important a matter. Indeed, early in the harvest, it was just such time prophecies as these which awakened the Lord’s people then and since, to the point and meaning of the signs then just developing. The Three Time Prophecies The three prophecies are of 3 times, 1290 days, 1335 days. The first of these takes us to the conclusion of Papacy’s baneful rule of power, "when he [papacy] shall have accomplished to scatter the power of the holy people" (Daniel 12:7). This period is mentioned seven times in the prophecies, variously as 3 "times" (years), 42 months and 1260 days, which a little computation will show are all equivalent periods (Daniel 7:25; 12:7; Revelation 11:2,3; 12:6,14; 13:5). This seven-fold repetition emphasizes the intrinsic significance of these foundational time prophecies, and compels us to recognize a great importance to the issue. These prophecies are fulfilled on the scale of a day for a year, just as with the first advent prophecy of 70 weeks. The Adventists generally dated this period from 538 to 1798 when the Pope was left in charge of Rome by Justinian’s General Belisarius and the later Pope was forcibly evicted from Rome by the French General Berthier. Others subsequently advanced these dates one year to 539 and 1799, noting that 539 was the date of the fall of the Goths, the Pope’s Italian adversaries, in the capture of their capital Ravenna, and 1799 the date of the death of the evicted Pope Pius VI, leaving Papacy temporarily headless and broken. These dates and the history supporting them are firm and clear. They are explained in Studies in the Scriptures, Volume 3, pages 61–90, and in a detailed and well researched article "The Little Horn," Beauties of the Truth, August 1992.1 The second prophecy, that of 1290 years, takes us 30 years further to 1829. Daniel 12:10,11 indicates this would be the time "many . . . shall understand" the unfolding prophecies of Daniel. About this time began the Adventist Movement under the general leadership of William Miller, which propelled the study of these very prophecies throughout the Christian world. But the blessed time appointed for the appearance of "Michael," our Lord Jesus at his second advent, was to be at the close of 1335 years. This span takes us another 45 years further to 1874, and the "blessedness" of present truth has unfolded ever since. "Blessed are those servants, whom the lord when he cometh shall find watching . . . he shall gird himself, and make them to sit down to meat, and will come forth and serve them" (Luke 12:37). The feast of present truth has been wonderful. (Compare Revelation 3:20.) Other Time Prophecies Bro. Miller had supposed the 1290 years ended at the same time as the 1260, and so began the 1290 (and therefore the 1335) 30 years earlier than the 1260. This is one reason he anticipated the Lord’s return in 1843 (508+1335=1843). Bro. Miller also blended these with other time calculations regarding the Gentile Times, the Jubilees, and the close of 6000 years of chronology from Adam. Bro. Nelson Barbour, a younger associate of Bro. Miller, later recognized that the 1290 and 1335 should begin at the same time as the 1260. He subsequently found that Bowen’s chronology showed 6000 years from Adam would close about the time of the newly focused 1335 years, and adjusted the Gentiles Times and Jubilees to meet his improved deductions regarding Daniel. To these he appended the consideration of the Jewish Double and the Harvest Parallels, all described in Studies in the Scriptures, Volumes 2 and 3. These applications have been much discussed and sometimes disputed. But most brethren who embrace present truth agree that some or all of these considerations are scripturally supportive of the presence of Christ since about 1874. We concur. It is the writer’s view that after some modification in accord with the latest studies of Scripture and the extant factual records from the ancient Middle East, these lines of evidence, including the Jubilees, do indeed identify the progress of events since the return of Christ. Our Lord presented himself as Messiah in the year 29, and returned in 1874. 3 years after the first advent Israel was cast off from favor; 3 years after the second advent Israel was favored by a beginning of a return to the land. As the fire of judgment consumed Jerusalem 40 years after the first advent, so the fire of judgment ravaged Christendom 40 years after the second advent, during World War I, at the close of Gentile Times. Why Is This Not Apparent To All? If the signs of the Lord’s presence are about us—the Harvest Truth, the Harvest Movement, the Restoration of Israel, and the Time of Trouble—and if the time prophecies regarding Michael’s assumption of power lead us so carefully through the 1260 years of Papal rule, the unfolding of Daniel’s prophecies in the 1820s, finally to the appearance of our Lord in 1874 at the end of the 1335 days, just when the signs themselves began to appear—and if the ancillary time and other prophecies accord with these—why then does not the Christian world with one voice embrace the return of Christ? There are three reasons. First, they are largely unaware of these evidences. This is partly due to a lack of earnest concern with the subject, and partly because of a lack of our public ministry to assist them. Second, most expect the return of Christ to be visible, and therefore so apparent that it will be unmistakable and unambiguous. In such a case Christ could not have returned in the past. Third, most expect that at the Lord’s return the saints will be taken in a moment, collectively, into glory—which has not yet occurred. The second point is not a difficulty for those imbued with a sense of present truth. They long ago learned that Christ is a spirit, not flesh and blood, and that during his thousand year kingdom he will rule as the invisible spiritual master of the world just as Satan has done by usurpation for so long. "Every eye shall see him" (Revelation 1:7) in the sense that the restored world will "see his [God’s] face" (Revelation 22:4), in the sense that Job said "now mine eye seeth thee [God]" (Job 42:5) —that is, through the eye of faith and understanding. But the third objection is problematic even for some of the dear brethren of our fellowship. There are three reasons for this. (A) The many New Testament references to the Lord’s return as the culmination of our labors, and our entrance into glory. (B) Specifically 1 Thessalonians 4:16,17. (C) The apparent paucity of texts explicitly affirming that the return of Christ will be followed by a period of time during which the call of the saints will continue. Though the evidence for the presence of Christ is compelling, these objections are not without force and should be addressed. These Objections Considered (A) Here are some examples. "I will come again and receive you unto myself" (John 14:3). "When he shall appear, we shall be like him" (1 John 3:2). "When Christ . . . shall appear, then shall ye also appear with him" (Colossians 3:4). "When the chief Shepherd shall appear, ye shall receive a crown" (1 Peter 5:4). These, and many like them, so tightly connect the return of Christ with the reward of the saints it is sometimes assumed the entire glorification of the saints will take place at the moment of Christ’s return. In the absence of any contrary evidence this inference may be excusable. But the conclusion at issue is but an inference, and contrary evidence does exist. The harvest of the Jewish age involved the work of years. John 4:35–38 makes this clear, and Matthew 10:23 affirms that the disciples would scarcely have completed the work before the time of judgment, about 40 years later. Is the more important harvest of the Gospel Age to take less time? Is it, unlike the Jewish Harvest, to take but a solitary moment? On the contrary, Matthew 13:39 declares "the harvest is the [sunteleia, conclusion] of the age." Vine’s expository dictionary says of this word: "marking the completion or consummation of the various parts of a scheme. In Matthew 13:39 . . . the rendering ‘the end of the world’ . . . is misleading . . . ‘the consummation of the age’ is correct. The word does not denote a termination, but the heading up of events to the appointed climax." The work of the harvest is not simply a work of snatching the saints momentarily into heaven. When the tares were discovered springing up among the wheat, the question was natural: "Wilt thou that we go and gather them up? But he said Nay; lest while ye gather up the tares, ye root up also the wheat with them" (Matthew 13:28,29). Notice that the separating work intended might have occurred during the age, but as it would cause injurious commotion this separation was deferred to the end of the age. The separation at issue was clearly not the momentary snatching of the good to glory. It is the separation of wheat and tares spoken of in Revelation 18:4, "Come out of her, my people." This requires a message, understanding of the call, and a decision to respond. It describes a work of years, not of moments. It describes precisely the separation of the saints from Christendom which has occurred since the advent of present truth. It means the Lord of harvest is present (Revelation 14:14), separating the wheat, and subsequently receiving them into the barn beyond. (B) 1 Thessalonians 4:16,17. "The Lord himself shall descend . . . the dead in Christ shall rise first: Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them." This text clearly requires a sequence of events. The dead rise first. Then [Greek: epeita, "afterward"] we who are alive and remain will join them. How long afterward? The text does not specify. Apparently at the time of each one’s death, there being no need to sleep in death, their awakening on the other side proceeds without a lapse. The difficulty is that some render the expression "together with" as "at the same time" (for example the Wilson Diaglott). The rapture concept of Christendom is based on this understanding. But even among some who do not embrace the rapture—because clearly our old bodies will never float to heaven (1 Corinthians 15:50)—a concern for this rendering induces them to suppose all the saints are changed to glory in a moment. It may be helpful to note other uses of the words hama (together) and sun (with) by the same apostle. The context of 1 Thessalonians 4:13 onward is about the brethren who had already died. "We sorrow not as others who have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with [sun] him" (verses 13,14). The last expression, containing the Greek word sun (with), is not as simple as it may seem. It does not refer to God bringing the church with Jesus at his second advent, for clearly the church is raised after his return, not before. "Will God bring with him" means that God will bring us from the dead just as he brought Jesus from the dead. We will be raised "with" Jesus. Clearly this does not mean at the same time, for his raising and ours are separated by 2000 years. We are raised "with" him in a common experience, but not at the same time. The word hama (together) appears in Romans 3:12, "They are together [hama] become unprofitable." The text refers to the whole race of mankind. We did not all "become unprofitable" simultaneously, but each one in his course over the 6000 years of human experience. Together means a common experience, not at the same time. But, some may continue, when the two words appear together, "hama sun," they mean "at the same time." Not so. 1 Thessalonians 5:10 is such a case. "Who died for us, that whether we wake [are alive when he returns] or sleep [are dead when he returns] we should live together with [hama sun] him." Living together with Jesus denotes a common experience rather than a common moment. (C) The third objection is the apparent paucity of texts affirming the saints continue in the flesh. The keyword here is apparent. As the writings of the apostles in the New Testament epistles were mainly exhortation—or in Paul’s case wrestling with the issue of Grace versus the Law—naturally the usual references to the coming of Christ would be exhortations to faithfulness until the blessed advent. But when the particulars of the matter are discussed, it is different. Here are some examples.
The Restoration of Israel Acts 3:21 affirms that Christ is retained in the heavens "until the period of restoration" (NASB). To the Jewish audience Peter addressed, this meant the restoration of Israel as the prophets had predicted—and of course through them, the blessing of "all the kindreds of the earth" (Acts 3:25). The disciples also were concerned about the restoration of Israel before Jesus left them. In Acts 1:6, their parting question to Jesus was "Lord, wilt thou at this time restore again the kingdom to Israel?" Our Lord in essence replied not now, but later. Then he left, and the angels affirmed "This same Jesus ... shall so come in like manner" (verse 11). Apparently, therefore, the time for restoring the kingdom to Israel would be at the Lord’s return, and this is precisely the connection Peter makes in Acts 3:21. Therefore the restoration of Israel is a function of the return of Christ. From the Berlin Treaty and Petah Tikvah in 1878 to the Balfour Declaration in 1917 to the restored statehood of 1948, the restoration of Israel has progressed as a visible demonstration of the influence of our returned Lord. The process will climax with the breath of faith breathed into Israel in the troubles incident to the four winds (Ezekiel 37:9), when the sealing of the saints is complete (Revelation 7:3). The Time is at Hand For all of these reasons, it is evident that the Presence of Christ involves a period of time during which all the work of the harvest of the Gospel Age proceeds. The now clear prophecies of Daniel affirm that Michael was due to "stand up" in regal authority in 1874. Other time prophecies and parallels blend their support to the same conclusion. Just at the time indicated Present Truth appeared, an ardent spokesman appeared for its promulgation, the harvest separation of wheat and tares ensued, Israel by stages began returning home, the time of trouble subsequently broke forth in unprecedented world wars, and now the nations are gathering for the final distresses incident to the incoming Kingdom of Christ. The Lord of Harvest is present. The Messiah of Israel has returned. The King of Earth has arrived. _____________________ 1. There is sometimes confusion about the precise year of the fall of Ravenna, and as the matter has been raised from time to time among the brethren it deserves some attention. There are two possible reasons for the confusion: The first is a conflict in the received text of Procopius, the historian who wrote in Greek a narration of the Gothic Wars which resulted in the Pope’s increased authority. In one case Procopius equates the 1st year of the Gothic war with the 9th of Justinian (Procopius 5.5.1, Loeb Classical Library edition, Volume 3, page 43). In another, narrating events of the 2nd year of the war, he equates it with the 11th of Justinian (compare pages 147, 307). To be consistent, the latter reference should have said the 10th year of Justinian. Since tenth is "dekaton" and eleventh "endekaton," it is supposed a writing error is at issue. (This is explained in a footnote in the "Little Horn" article.) Or perhaps "endekaton" should be "en dekaton"—"in tenth." A second possible confusion arises from the fact that Procopius narrates events from spring to spring, identifying the close of each year of the war as ending with the close of winter, when the spring equinox of the following year approached. Thus, for example, he ends the narrative of the year 539, during which the Ravenna fell to Justinian’s General Belisarius, with these words: "And Belisarius took his way to Byzantium; and the winter drew to its close and the fifth year ended in this war, the history of which Procopius has written" (Procopius 6.30.30, Loeb Classical Library edition, Volume 4, page 147). As the marginal notation in the Loeb version properly indicates, the year was 540 (in the spring). But the episodes recorded prior to this, including the fall of Ravenna to Belisarius (pages 113–138), apparently occurred before the winter, thus in the year 539. |